The lowdown on Scotland's Euro 2024 Norwich trio - and why Angus Gunn's Leeds horror show should be cast aside

Norwich City’s season came to a calamitous conclusion with a miserable 4-0 mauling at a raucous Elland Road – but with the European Championships just around the corner, three of the Canaries’ contingent are turning their attention to international matters as the Tartan Army prepare to flock en masse to Germany.

Kenny McLean and Angus Gunn both played all 90 minutes of that Leeds United drubbing as City’s play-off hopes went up in smoke and the final nail was hammered into David Wagner’s coffin. And while Grant Hanley’s season was seriously scuppered by injury, the steely Scotland defender watched on as an unused substitute as the Whites ran riot and ruthlessly put the lights out on our most turbulent of Championship campaigns.

Understandably, many of a Scottish persuasion may only catch a glimpse of the trio when they pull on an international jersey and possess relatively limited knowledge about their form heading into this month’s hotly-anticipated tournament. So with that opening game against the hosts just a tantalising two weeks away, here’s all you need to know about City’s Scottish stars – written by a season-ticket holder and columnist who has been casting their eye over them over the course of this season.

Kenny McLean impressed once again for Norwich City this season.

Kenny McLean

City’s fully-deserved player of the season after a hugely consistent campaign in the heart of Wagner’s midfield. Despite brilliant Brazilian Gabriel Sara, youth prodigy Jonathan Rowe and prolific striker Josh Sargent grabbing many of the plaudits, McLean has been City’s Mr Dependable and never shirked away from taking responsibility when the going got tough. That included during a temporary stint as an emergency centre-back, seamlessly slotting in alongside Shane Duffy for a period that actually kickstarted the club’s remarkable resurgence.

Back in November, City were languishing in the bottom half of the table after a rotten run of results that left Wagner on the brink. But despite widespread fan fury towards both the manager and his misfiring players, captain fantastic McLean never gave in and was a crucial lynchpin in spearheading our unlikely play-off pursuit.

In both midfield and defence, McLean’s incisive, progressive passing continually took City up the pitch and found the likes of Sara, Sargent, Rowe and fellow wing wizard Borja Sainz in dangerous areas. And coupled with his tenacity and ferocious work rate out of possession, it’s no surprise the Scot finally scooped his maiden individual gong at the club after six seasons of dedicated service.

Angus Gunn had a largely solid campaign at Carrow Road.

McLean, 32, remains strangely underappreciated by sections of our fanbase but has been one of the first names on the teamsheet under three different managers since arriving from Aberdeen back in 2018. And after grabbing that dramatic late winner against Norway in Euro 2024 qualifying last summer, he’ll be travelling to the continent with confidence as he looks to bolster an eye-catching midfield including Scott McTominay, John McGinn and former City loanee Billy Gilmour.

Angus Gunn

For anyone who watched that Elland Road demolition last month, the next few hundred words may come as something of a surprise.

Gunn, son of legendary Norwich and Scotland goalkeeper Bryan, was at fault for both of Leeds’ first two goals as Ilia Gruev’s clever free-kick caught him out at his near post and the usually-reliable shot-stopper found himself in no man’s land for Joel Piroe’s header. But that Yorkshire horror-show was in no way representative of a player who has come on leaps and bounds this season and emerged as perhaps the English second-tier’s standout goalkeeper.

Grant Hanley has not featured much in 2024 for the Canaries.

Gunn, 28, kept City in so many closely-contested clashes over the course of the campaign, acrobatically thwarting opponents at crucial moments to so often help haul us over the line. And more broadly, the nine-cap international’s handling, positioning and composure in his box served as a crucial component of City’s new year ascent up the table.

Similarly to virtually all modern goalkeepers, Gunn has had to adapt to a possession-based, building from the back philosophy and done so with remarkable assurance, becoming adept at inviting the press so City can attempt to play through teams and progress up the pitch. It is no coincidence that City’s autumn slump came when Gunn was sidelined through injury, with former Millwall keeper George Long visibly lacking the presence of City’s hugely popular No.1.

So despite his shaky end to the season in the heat of play-off battle, I’d love to see Gunn given the faith of Steve Clarke and be Scotland’s main man in Germany.

Grant Hanley

Sadly, I can’t claim to have watched much more of Hanley than any Scotland fan this season. Because after suffering a crippling Achilles injury at former club Blackburn Rovers back in April 2023, the experienced defender only featured in eight of the Canaries’ clashes over the course of the campaign. That may send alarm bells ringing that Hanley is heading to Germany undercooked – but if there’s ever a man to battle through adversity and prove people wrong, it’s the hardy 48-cap centre-back.

Like McLean, Hanley was a crucial cog in City’s pair of Championship-winning sides under Daniel Farke and has racked up almost 200 appearances in yellow and green since signing from Newcastle back in 2017. And despite his severe lack of gametime over the last 12 months, I’d still back the Dumfries-born defender to continue doing a rock-solid job for both club and country going forward.

Clarke appears to be a big admirer of Hanley, 32, and may well hand him the opportunities to impress in next week’s friendlies against Gibraltar and Finland. And after winning his race against time to be fit for the tournament, I wouldn’t bet against him slotting back into the heart of the Scottish defence and delivering the types of dependable displays we associate him with when Clarke’s side tussle with Germany, Hungary and Switzerland this month.